


The Anbu Way

by nvmsl



Series: The Art of War (Nejiten) [3]
Category: Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, Naruto
Genre: Angst, BAMF Tenten (Naruto), Character Death, Dead Hyuuga Neji, Konohagakure | Hidden Leaf Village, Ninja, Post-Fourth Shinobi War, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Post-War, Sunagakure | Hidden Sand Village, Tenten (Naruto)-centric, Weapons
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-27
Updated: 2020-03-29
Packaged: 2021-03-01 02:34:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,509
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23344057
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nvmsl/pseuds/nvmsl
Summary: ***ANGSTY!! WOOT WOOT don't read if you don't like angsty stuff***A grieving Tenten joins Anbu after the Fourth Shinobi War.This is her journey to peace.
Relationships: Haruno Sakura/Uchiha Sasuke, Hyuuga Hinata/Uzumaki Naruto, Hyuuga Neji/Tenten, Inuzuka Kiba/Tamaki, Nara Shikamaru/Temari, Sai/Yamanaka Ino
Series: The Art of War (Nejiten) [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1593565
Comments: 6
Kudos: 18





	1. Kismet

**Kismet** (n.)- fate, destiny. 

*****

The war is over, and, honestly, Tenten can choose to have the peaceful life that Shikamaru always drones on and on about, but something stops her from settling down. 

The war is hard on her friends; Shikamaru and Ino both lose their fathers; Choji’s innocent soul is haunted by images so bloody that he loses ten pounds within the first week after the war; Sakura works nonstop and is constantly exhausted from using her medical jutsu; Naruto reunites with his father, only to lose him again; Sasuke finds out the truth about his brother; Kiba and Akamaru come out unscathed, but his sister, Hana, is stuck in a coma; Hinata loses nearly a third of her clan to the war and Shino loses even more; Gai’s severely injures his leg and will never be able to go on a mission again; Lee is no longer so cheerful; and Tenten… 

The war not only destroys her team, but it also takes away her closest friend, and what could have been her first true family, with Neji as her husband and children running around their house. 

She realizes that after all that she’s been through, she doesn’t have anything else to lose. 

And so Tenten submits her application the day after the war is officially declared to be over, and gets her letters of approval eight days later. The letters say that her first mission, the first S-rank mission since the war, is in four weeks and that she should pick up her items at the Anbu headquarters, meet with her partner (a kunoichi named Hinoko) at least a week before the mission, get a tattoo from a certified Anbu agent, and speak with any friends and family about her Anbu status if she hasn’t already. 

But even after reading the letter, she doesn’t tell any of her friends, not even Lee, that she is now a part of Anbu. It is only when she goes to Sai’s place one evening, sixteen days before her mission, to get her Anbu tattoo that Ino finds out, and proceeds to tell all of their friends as she and Sai talk about Anbu while he tattoos her shoulder. 

“Why did you sign up?” he asks, genuine concern lacing his voice. “I know we don’t really talk much, but I’m just saying, it’s peaceful now, and we could all finally settle down from… well, everything that’s happened.” 

“I think I just needed to try something new,” she says, gazing at the Anbu design that’s slowly taking shape on her right shoulder as she lies to herself. “I’ll just be helping keep the peace, that’s all.” 

They fall silent because Sai knows that if Tenten is lying, and Tenten knows it, too. If she really had wanted to try something new, civilian life would be the proper choice. 

Tenten knows that she is desperate, clinging onto the remains of the active shinobi life and what memories she has of Team Gai and her deceased lover. But she denies it in her mind. 

The buzzing of the needle becomes the only sound in the room for a while, until Ino bursts into the room, followed by Lee, Sakura, and.... all of the remaining members of the Konoha 12 hurry in. Even Sasuke is there, Sakura holding his arm tightly, as if afraid that he will suddenly disappear from the village again. 

They all have somber expressions on their faces, even Kiba’s usual grin is more of a frown. The buzzing of tattoos needles is quickly replaced by the voices of the shinobi, all searching for reasons why she shouldn’t join the Anbu. Sasuke, whom Tenten has pretty much never even talked to, even brings up a few reasonable points, jumping into the conversation every now and then. Ino leads it all, pacing around the room and talking with her hands.

“You’re crazy, Tenten,” Ino blurts out, waving her hands in the air. She paces in small circles beside Tenten’s tattoo chair. “We literally just got back from fighting and you want to go on an Anbu mission?!” Sakura nods along. 

“I agree with Ino. It might be nearly a month after the war but your body is still probably not going to be fully healed by the time of the mission. If you really want to do a mission, at least do one that is less strenuous.” Sakura voices her opinion from the sofa, sipping the tea that Ino had quickly made for all of them.

Choji, who sits in an armchair beside Tenten’s chair, offers his chips to Tenten, who politely shakes her head no. “They’ve got a point, you know. Plus you’ve got to eat some more to regain your health. Hey, Shikamaru, you want chips?” 

The young strategist reaches into the bag and brings out a piece, examining it. “I think that you should think it over, Tenten. I was looking over Kakashi-sensei’s files and there’s plenty of Anbu available during this time and I can just get someone to substitute for this job. I’m sure Hinoko would jump at any opportunity for any mission.” 

Kiba nods in agreement as Akamaru nuzzles Tenten’s left hand from the ground. “Honestly, yeah, just let that 14-year-old Anbu girl take the job. She barely even got hurt during the war, and Tamaki told me that the girl was complaining about being bored and all that. Plus Yugao Uzuki can also take the job, Kakashi probably wouldn’t mind.” 

“Yes!” Lee nods furiously, his eyes sparkling. “That is fabulous, Kiba! Tenten, you can stay and rest up and let the girl’s youthfulness complete the mission for you!”

“She’s already on the job, Lee.” Tenten sighs. 

“Yeah, see Lee gets what I’m— what?” Kiba pauses mid-sentence at Tenten’s words. “What do you mean—”

Naruto butts in. “You really are slow, dog-boy. It means they’re part of a team.” The blonde glances at Tenten while rubbing his neck. “Man, that sucks, Tenten. There are probably other people that can still go through. There’s plenty of Anbu as Kakashi’s guards so I’m sure he can spare Uzuki Yugao. Kiba’s got a point, despite how slow he is.”

“I don’t think you should be talking, Naruto.” Sasuke drawls out, leaning back on the sofa next to Sakura. “I think you might actually be slower than Kiba, despite what you think.” Sai lets out an indignant snort as he carefully wraps up the finished tattoo on Tenten’s arm, and Shino, who had been standing silently by the door, even chuckles, as Naruto snarkily barks out a reply with his face red from embarrassment. For a moment, the solemn mood of the room is lifted by the most unexpected person. 

Tenten can’t help but smile in amusement. “Look, I know you guys really don’t want to me to join Anbu, but—”

“I think you should,” Sai says, squinting as he wipes his tattoo needles with antiseptic wipes. Tenten looks at him in surprise, while Ino glares from four feet away. “If what you’re looking for is what I was once looking for, I think you’ll find it, Tenten.” 

Their eyes meet and suddenly, Tenten remembers that Sai was also an Anbu. A moment passes between the two, and she is grateful that Sai understands. 

“Sai! You’re supposed to be on our side!” Ino glares daggers at her boyfriend. “How are you alright with this?!” 

Sai shrugs. “Anbu’s… challenging, but I’m sure Tenten’s capable. Plus, it’s probably the best place for her right now, if what she’s looking for is what I think she is looking for. Also, since she’s Konoha’s Weapon Mistress so she might be able to help some Anbu members with Kenjustu, too. It looks like a win-win situation to me.”

Shino speaks from his spot next to the door. “It’s true. I do not know what Anbu gives, but many of my relatives have also gone to Anbu seeking something and come back with it. Sai has been in Anbu, so I think we should trust his judgment.” 

Ino scowls. “Not you, too, Shino!” 

There was a moment of silence as they all ponder Sai and Shino’s words. But after a while, Hinata is the one who finally speaks. 

“Tenten-chan, as much as I would support you joining Anbu if it is really what you think you need, I just want to ask… do you think Neji-niisan would have wanted you to do this?” The typically shy girl’s pale eyes steadily meet Tenten’s brown ones, and suddenly, Tenten is thrown back into the past. 

*****Flashback******

**_Three weeks before the war._ **

“Tenten.” 

“Hmm?” Tenten looked up from the sword that she was polishing. She had gone by the local weapons shop earlier in the day and made a ninjato sword, with the help of the blacksmith there, of course. It was probably the finest weapon she’d ever made, and she couldn’t help but admire it, and was now sharpening the blade nonstop. It wasn’t fully completed yet, and the edges were still a bit dull, but she already knew it would turn out to be a masterpiece. She could already see how it would fly from her scroll, the angles... 

“Tenten?” She snapped out of her thoughts. 

“Sorry, what?” Neji was sitting next to her, a book about the 8 Trigrams laying in front of him, upside down beside a pile of fallen leaves on the ground. “Did you say something?” 

“... I think I’m going to join Anbu. Actually, I sent in my application yesterday.” 

“WHAT?!” Tenten screeched, nearly dropping the weapon she was holding in shock. “WHY DO YOU WANT TO JOIN ANBU?!”

“Well, it was the logical choice if I were—”

“AND WHY ARE YOU ONLY JUST TELLING ME THIS?!” 

“I only just sent in the application yester—” 

“HOW COULD YOU LEAVE ME WITH JUST LEE AND GAI-SENSEI?!” 

“I’m still going to be part of Team G—” 

“IF YOU TOLD ME EARLIER I WOULD’VE APPLIED, TOO!” 

“But that’s exactly why I didn’t t—” 

“TWIN RISING DRAGONS!” 

“Oh, shit, KAITEN!” The weapons Tenten sent randomly flying at Neji bounced away harmlessly as Neji’s quick reaction took over. She reached for another scroll in her fit of anger after emptying out the one she was just using, but suddenly, Neji was grabbing her and they were on the ground again. 

“Why are you doing this?”! She asked, voice muffled by his shoulder, anger still coursing through her veins. “Why didn’t you tell me?” She couldn’t see Neji’s expression, but she was sure that he had a frown on his face, too. 

“I can’t risk you getting hurt. This is something I need to do for myself.”

“That’s a lie, Neji. You and I both know that!” Tenten pulled back, searching for the truth in his expression. His face was stoic as usual, and he wouldn’t meet her eyes. “It’s to prove yourself to the clan, am I wrong?” She slipped out of his hold and began to stand. 

“Tenten,” Neji’s voice pleaded. “I need—”

Tenten’s gaze whipped back to the Hyuga behind her. “Need? You don’t need to do ANY of this! You’re already a jōnin, Neji! If this is to prove yourself to the main branch, you already have! You became a jōnin at a younger age than even Hiashi-san! Kami, you’re called the Hyuga prodigy for a reason!” She turned, ready to walk away, not even bothering to gather her weapons. 

Suddenly, Neji reached out and grabbed her wrist. “Look, I know, but the elders won’t be—” 

Tenten whipped around, her eyes glittering dangerously. “So you’re willing to put your life on the line? And what about us? This is your life, Neji! When are you going to start living it like it's yours?!”

“You and I both know there’s more to that.” Neji looked away as his expression turned melancholic. “Just… let me have this one alright? I need to do this for myself.” 

A week later, she returns to the blacksmith and carves the kanjis of the Hyuga name into her newly made ninjato blade and a single kanji for ‘heaven’ by the handle. She hadn’t planned on making a sheath; after all, she had planned on the weapon just being in her scrolls, but different situations called for different solutions. And so she buys the strongest wood there is in Konoha, and cuts and smooths and paints until the piece of Isunoki bark takes the shape of a jet-black ninjato sheath with a dark dragon stretching across its length. 

When Neji receives his letters of approval for Anbu three days later, she gives it to him, eyes downcast and voice silent. There was no need for words between them. The gift itself said enough. 

Neji becomes the first Anbu member to carry two blades on his back. 

***** End Flashback*****

“I am  _ not _ having this conversation,” Tenten says, voice shaking slightly as she turns toward Sai. “Are there any specific instructions on what I should do with this tattoo?” 

“Just keep it wrapped for the rest of today and keep it clean for the next few days. If anything starts to look like a rash, or if it gets really itchy, apply some aloe gel. If it doesn’t help, just drop by and I’ll check it for you.” 

“Alright, thank you.” Tenten quickly stands from the chair that was sitting in, stretching her arm and keeping her gaze straight in front of her, avoiding eye contact with her friends in the room. “Look, I know you’re all just trying to look out for me, but they've already put me on the mission and I’m not going to drag someone else onto it. I’m not changing my mind.” She moves toward the door, not looking back. 

Suddenly, there’s a flash of purple, and Hinata is in front of her. She quickly looks away, avoiding those familiar eyes, and instead, focusing on the bronze-colored doorknob by Hinata’s side.

“Tenten, please, just think about it. I truly believe that Neji—” 

“Hinata.” 

“Please, don’t look away, I’m not lying, I swear! Neji—”

“Hinata,” her voice cracks as she interrupts the younger girl, but she doesn’t care. She can feel the weight of all of the eyes in the room on her, and her shoulders are sagging as she speaks. “Please, don’t make it harder than it already is for me.” She finds herself echoing Neji’s words. “I… I need to do this for myself.” 

Hinata opens her mouth to speak, but Tenten is quicker. 

“I need to go,” Tenten blurts out, sliding past Hinata and rushing out the door. The younger Hyuga calls out “Wait!” behind her, but Tenten ignores her and hurries down the street.

Tenten makes several turns, wandering aimlessly and stuck in her thoughts. She casually flips one of her smaller summoning scrolls in her left hand. It’s become a habit for whenever she’s anxious or deep in thought. When she comes to a stop, she realizes that she’s in front of the Hokage building, and she makes up her mind. 

The weapons mistress walks through the building, politely nodding and occasionally greeting a few people until she makes it to the Hokage's office. She softly knocks on the door. A moment passes and some shuffling is heard. Then, Kakashi’s voice rings out.

“Come in.” 

Tenten twists the doorknob, speaking as the door opens. “Hokage-sama, I would like to—” She looks up and nearly drops the scroll in her left hand when she sees Byakugan-white eyes. There is an awkward pause of silence before she is jerked out from her thoughts and comes to her senses. She bows uneasily. 

“Hiashi-sama. I apologize for disrupting your meeting with Hokage-sama.” 

“Please stand straight, Tenten. We’re past these honorifics, I’m sure Neji would’ve told you in the past.” The older Hyuga says, his voice calm. “Besides, I was just about to leave. I will see you tomorrow, Hokage-san.” He nods at Kakashi and Tenten before making his way out. 

Kakashi sighs. “Tenten, we’ve been over this. Just call me Kakashi. Adding the -sama makes me feel so old.” 

“Sorry about that,” Tenten says seriously, but she can’t help the grin that slips onto her face. Kakashi was always so laidback, sometimes she feels like he is only a year or two older than her, not thirteen. “Anyways, I wanted to see if there were any missions that I could take during these two weeks?” 

“Hm… but don’t you have an Anbu mission coming up? When was it again?” Kakashi starts looking through the piles of paper on his desk. “I think I have your file somewhere in here…” 

“It’s in two weeks, but I was hoping I could take a mission before going on that one. Maybe something that would last a couple days.” 

“Why don’t you just spend the next two weeks resting up and preparing? I think that may be better for you.” 

“I…” Tenten pauses, searching for a response. “I… think that it might be better for me to regain the feel of being on a mission. I haven’t done any missions for the past two weeks, and it might help if I were to get some more exposure, even if it is an easier mission.” 

“Hm… alright then, let me see,” Kakashi grabs a pile of papers and begins rapidly flipping through them. After a couple of seconds, he pulls a sheet out of the pile. “Here’s a simple one. A-rank though. It’s about a one and a half week-long mission, about 10 or 11 days in total. You’re going to have to travel to Suna with a partner or two. Does that work for you?” 

She nods her head. “That works fine. What’s the mission?” 

“Well, we need at least two Konoha shinobi to guard Sabaku no Temari from Suna to Konoha. Even though she’s a jōnin herself and there’s going to be some Sand Anbu with her as well, since she’s the ambassador for Suna, we have to abide by the treaty between our villages and send at least two jōnin as well. Is there anyone specific that you would like to partner up with?” 

_ Neji _ , her mind said by reflex. But Neji was gone, the last thing she wanted was one of her friends to tag along and spend the entire time trying to convince her not to join Anbu. 

“I don’t have any preferences. Maybe someone that I will be working more with in the future? Someone from Anbu?” 

“Hm…” Kakashi dug through some more files before finding a specific one and opening it. She pulled out a sheet of paper and handed it to Tenten. “This is Takamoto Hikaru’s information. He’s a couple years older than you, but he’s a reliable Anbu and specializes in genjutsu, which can balance well with your fuinjutsu. I’ll send him over your place later tonight, how about that? Maybe at eight o’clock? Then you guys can take some time to make plans, and you can leave tomorrow morning. I’ll send a letter to let Temari-san know as well.” 

“That works. Thank you for the mission, Kakashi-san.” Tenten bows briefly before starting to leave the room. Her left foot is already out the door when Kakashi calls her name again. 

“Yes?” She turns abruptly, hand still resting on the doorknob. 

“I’m sure you know that I was once Anbu as well.” Kakashi’s dark eyes meet hers with an unusual sense of sadness, and he speaks, voice soft. “We’re not so different, you and I.” For a moment, his eyes seem to see through Tenten, gazing at something beyond where she stands, and it takes all of her willpower to stay still and no turn to search for what he is staring at. 

Suddenly, his eyes snap back to meet hers and he speaks again, with a solemn expression. “It’s a dangerous job. Stay safe and keep your mind clear.” Pause. “I would hate to lose another able shinobi to Anbu.” 

He doesn’t say anything else, and instead, nods at her to leave. However, the look in his eyes speaks loud enough for Tenten to understand. And so, she takes the advice and stores it in the corner of her heart. Then, she walks out of the Hokage building with her head held high, and she whispers a promise to the sky. 

_ Even if I am not destined to move mountains, I will find a way to break through them, and one day, I know I will find myself by yourself again.  _

She hopes he hears. 


	2. Tacenda

**Tacenda** (n.)- things better left unsaid; matters to be passed over in silence.

*****

Tenten comes to a conclusion after spending some time with her new mission partner: Takamoto Hikaru is incredibly skilled and smart but is also  _ unbelievably  _ talkative.

The first time they meet, Hikaru reminds Tenten of Kiba, with his brown hair, joking smile, and playful personality. But that’s where the similarities end. 

Hikaru stands with a slight slouch that reminds her of Shikamaru’s posture and wears an eye patch that covers his left eye. She notices but doesn’t ask. His headband is worn on his forehead, with a messy brown hair flopping over the top. And his attitude is even more cheerful than Lee and Gai’s combined. 

Tenten begins to lift her hand for a handshake, but Hikaru pulls her into a hug before she can do so, exclaiming, “I’m so excited to work with you! My name is Hikaru and you must be Tenten, right?! Kakashi-san told me all about you!” It's unexpected, and she finds out that Hikaru is an avid talker, but she can’t help but smile. 

They spend the night mapping out the safest and quickest roads to travel, but Hikaru’s jokes make the mission-planning go by much quicker, and there is more laughter than Tenten expects that night. Hikaru goes from talking about the best route through the woods to talking about Teuchi-san, the owner of Ichiraku Ramen, throwing fish toppings at him for flirting with Ayame-chan. They talk and plan until late in the night, and when she offers the guest room for him to stay in, he accepts. 

When she wakes the next morning, a while after the sun has risen, she finds Hikaru fully dressed—he must have gone and grabbed all of his supplies before she’d woke— and digging through the kitchen, making breakfast and yelling at her to hurry up and get her supplies together. 

She rolls out of bed and stumbles into her bathroom, taking a quick shower and brushing her teeth and washing her face. Her hair takes some time to dry, so she leaves it down and holds onto her hair ties for her buns. After drying herself with a towel, she binds her chest and slips into her Anbu uniform. The pants are loose-fitting, but the waistband fits perfectly to keep the pants from falling. She shrugs on a black sleeveless undershirt and fastens the distinct grey Anbu vest overtop. The rest of her scrolls and supplies, along with an extra Anbu uniform and some extra clothes, are already stored either in her scrolls or in the lightweight backpack that she plans on bringing. The only three things for the mission that have not been sealed away are her blank Anbu mask— which she had yet to paint— and her Anbu ninjato and, finally, her own ninjato, the one that she had made by herself. 

She pulls the sword from its sheath and brushes her fingers lightly across the Hyuga name. 

How ironic. She had been so worried that Anbu would be the death of him, yet it was the war that took him away, and he wasn’t even operating as an Anbu then. And the sword that she was so sure that would protect him? It had been completely useless, out of sight and tucked away with Neji’s Anbu uniform in the Hyuga compound. 

“Tenten, what is taking you so LONG? The eggs are getting cold, you know!” 

Hikaru’s voice jerks her out of her thoughts and she quickly sheaths the blade. At least she’ll be able to carry a part of him with her wherever she goes then, she thinks. 

And when she finally walks into her apartment kitchen, the breakfast table is surprisingly full of porridge and fried fish, miso soup and eggs, tofu and soy sauce, and avocado and natto. She swears she did not have so much food in her home as she slides into a chair at the table. Hikaru is already digging in, stuffing his face with tofu. At the same time, he throws jokes at her and makes sarcastic remarks. 

“You know how to cook?” Tenten remarks, not quite believing what she is seeing. 

Hikaru feigned offense, gasping with shock. “How did you know?!”

Tenten shakes her head as she mutters quick thanks for the meal to the deities above, and picks up her chopsticks. She takes a bite into the fried fish, and it is… 

“Delicious. Are you sure you made this? I’m impressed.” 

Hikaru “You need to eat more,” he says, his voice unexpectedly quiet and somber. Suddenly, he pokes her biceps, and the cheer returns into his words. “At this rate, I might have to give you a piggyback ride to Suna! Imagine how that would look like, haha!” 

A sudden wave of nostalgia hits and the image of Gai-sensei carrying Kakashi-sensei and Lee offering to carry Neji jumps into her head. Neji, whose grave was still fresh, and tombstone still surrounded by flowers. 

“You good there?”

Then, she pushes back the melancholic feelings and protests at Hikaru’s suggestion, waving her chopsticks wildly and dismissing his absurd idea. A warmth spreads through her chest and she swears Hikaru is less of a teammate and more of an older brother in that moment. 

That breakfast becomes the first one she had truly enjoyed since the end of the war. 

*****

It’s hot, and Tenten wonders why she volunteered to go on this mission. 

Even though it’s late autumn and relatively cold in Konoha, the desert is still far hotter than she had expected. Both she and Hikaru have ditched their Anbu masks and cloaks by the time they make it to the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of the Desert, deciding that they’ll put them back on when they get closer to Suna. Tenten seals them into one of her smaller scrolls, seeing that both of their lightweight backpacks are filled to the brim with scrolls of water, food, weapons and other supplies. 

The journey to Suna from Konoha takes 3 days, and for the most part, it is just them walking and Tenten listening to Hikaru talk nonstop about various topics. She appreciates his efforts to make conversation and occasionally joins in as well, adding a sentence or two now and then. But still, she finds herself quieter than usual. Then again, she had been this way ever since the war ended. 

It is not until the third day that they encounter attackers. The bandits appear at the end of the desert, on the outskirts of Suna, which the rocky plateaus meet the desert land. There are more attackers than Tenten expects, and a kunai grazes her forearm before she even pulls out a scroll. That’s when it hits her: she’s gotten rusty. 

After the war, she stopped having her morning spars with Neji. After all, with the loss of Neji from the team, Tenten didn’t have much of a partner. Lee and Gai-sensei were always off doing their own training regiment, running around town on their hands or kicking down poor trees on the training grounds, and even though she was invited to join, she didn’t think that she would be able to survive both her teammate and mentor rambling about the springtime of youth at the same time. 

She snaps out of her thoughts as she counts the enemies— there are eight of them, and judging from their stances, they are or were once all shinobi. 

Her eyes meet Hikaru’s single exposed eye, and Hikaru gives a nod. The two split up and take on the enemies, four for each of them. 

Tenten moves with ease— she has been training her whole life for fights like these— and kicks the feet out of one of the bandits. She whips one of her smaller scrolls open, and the ropes fly out, one end wrapping around the man in front of her as he curses. A cry rings out from behind her, and she senses the movement of chakra as she quickly grabs onto the other end of the rope. She pivots on her left foot, spinning out of the way as the female bandit behind her slams headfirst into the man already bounded by her ropes. 

Seizing the chance, Tenten wraps her end of the rope around the two figures and tightens and ties, until the two bandits are stuck together, looking like an animal with four legs trying to keep its balance. In the distance, she sees Hikaru slamming his enemies to the ground and tying ropes around them as well. Two of them are down and he’s jabbing his hands towards the third one, in a way that reminds Tenten of the Hyuga clan’s taijutsu. 

She spins around to see two other bandits scrambling toward her, one of them rapidly forming hand signals. She doesn’t hesitate, and runs toward them as well, all while summoning another rope from her scroll. The blonde bandit on her right throws shurikens at her while the other shoots a stream of mud at her, and she dodges both of them. 

All the years she spent training with Team Gai pays off, and she lurches to the left, moving quicker than the bandits can attack and determined to take out the Earth-user first. She focuses chakra into her right hand, the way that Neji had spent so much time teaching her, and moments later, she is slamming it into the man’s chin, using one of Neji’s favorite Taijutsu moves: the heel palm strike. The man falls to the ground, clutching his jaw in pain, and her attention shifts to the blonde bandit, who looks at her with wide eyes. She holds her the rope in her left hand, gesturing at the man writhing on the ground. 

“You can choose the easy way or the hard way,” she says, voice flat.

The man pauses for a brief second before narrowing his eyes and charging at her. His fists shoot out rapidly with quick and precise aim, but Tenten is faster. She flips backward when he delivers an uppercut, and ducks to the left as he throws a right hook, shifting her weight onto her left leg and spinning into a roundhouse kick straight to the blonde’s jaw, sending him flying to the ground. 

“That was one good kick,” Hikaru nods his approval. “Excellent accuracy.” All seven of the other bandits have already been bound together with ropes tied to their wrists and weaving toward their fingers to prevent them from making hand signals. 

After they tie the blonde bandit, they decide to put on their Anbu masks and continue their journey to Suna, all while tugging a line of bandits behind them. They take breaks every now and then, having mercy on the bandits and even giving them food and water. 

It is late in the afternoon when the sun is low and the sky is a brilliant shade of purple and orange when they finally arrive at the narrow, rocky entrance of the Village Hidden By Sand. The villagers cast curious looks at them as they walk by, recognizing the distinct Anbu masks and the Anbu tattoos on Hikaru and Tenten’s shoulders, but slightly concerned about the eight bandits that were tied and trailing behind the two shinobi. 

The bandits are transferred over to the guards at the entrance to the village, and they go to check in with the guards as well. 

It is Tenten’s second time traveling to Suna, but she is highly aware of the check-in process at Suna for outsiders. She and Hikaru wait patiently as the guards call them one by one to do a pat-down for weapons and to check their bags. They call her first, and she rises, grabbing onto her bag of scrolls and shouldering the two ninjato blades on her back. She removes her Anbu mask and steps into the small room where three Sand ninja wait. She already knows that it will take a while for them to go through all the scrolls, so she hands over her bag and supplies to one of the two male ninjas by the table and steps over to get patted down by the third. 

She eyes the man warily—he looks a bit older than her, possibly around Hikaru’s age, maybe a little younger— as he begins with her sandals, poking and prodding her bandages and loose-fitting pants. 

Suddenly, she feels his hands slide up the back of her thighs and press firmly against her butt, more tightly than needed, and something snaps inside her and—

_ SLAP! _

The two ninjas by the table glance up from examining Tenten’s scrolls in surprise, and Hikaru rushes in to see the third Sand ninja lying on the ground clutching his right cheek, and a very furious Tenten towering over him. There’s a miniature crater on the ground where the Sand shinobi is. 

“Um, what’s going on?” Hikaru asks, slightly concerned for the shinobi on the ground, sensing how angry Tenten is. 

“This piece of  _ filth _ just tried to feel me up!” Tenten rages. “I can’t even express how  _ disgusted _ I am!” 

“Lies!” The ninja on the ground stands up, wincing as he rubs his redden right cheek. “I was just doing the regular check when she just hit me out of nowhere!” 

Tenten clenches her jaw, taking a step toward the male ninja in front of her. “Get out.” 

The guard stares at her like she’s crazy. “Are you kidding me? This is my job. You can’t tell me to get out!” He looks at the other two Sand shinobi for backup, but they just stare at him blankly, confused as well. Finally, one of them does speak up. 

“Ma’am, please allow him to do his job, we have to give you this check-up to grant you access to the village—” 

“I don’t care if I have to get patted down, but I WILL NOT tolerate getting felt-up by this incompetent swine!” 

“Stop accusing me! I didn’t do anything!” The man’s voice gets higher as he denies his actions. 

“What is going on here?” A familiar low, slightly-raspy voice cuts through the tension in the room. Sabaku no Temari walks into the room and her face lights up just slightly when she sees Tenten. “Ah, you’ve finally arrived.” She turns toward Hikaru, who smiles brightly at her. “And you must be...um… I know your name, but what’s your code name again?” 

“Kage! I’m excited to work with you!” Temari holds out her hand for a handshake, and Hikaru, who has opened his arms, ready to hug her, sheepishly retracts and shakes her hand instead. 

“So what’s going on in here?” Temari looks about the room, the crater on the floor catching her eye. “Does it have something to do with that on the ground? I swear it wasn’t there before.” 

Immediately, the fire returns to Tenten’s eyes, and she practically growls, “Temari, I’m just saying, I think you’ll want to get this scoundrel out of my view within the next few minutes because I am  _ this  _ close to putting my paper bombs to use.” Temari’s face hardened.

“Yaguchi Renzo, you are officially relieved of your duties as a guard of Sunagakure and will be stripped of your shinobi privileges for the next three months.” Temari addresses the two other Sand shinobi. “You can give all of their supplies back to them. We need not be concerned with two of Konoha’s most loyal shinobi.” She turns toward the exit as Tenten and Hikaru gather all their supplies. 

“Wait, Temari-sama, you’re— you can’t just kick me off without hearing the whole story!” 

Tenten watches as her friend turns angrily. Temari marches up the man and grabs his collar, pulling him down her eye level, as she was a bit shorter than him. 

“Yaguchi, I know enough of the story. I just haven’t mentioned the four previous complaints that the Kazekage’s office has received regarding your abuse of power and preference of checking female shinobi. So yes, I  _ can _ just kick you off without hearing about what happened today.” At that, she pushes him back and faces the other two Sand shinobi in the room, who watch with intimidated, wide eyes. “Make sure that he leaves this building within the next five minutes. If he does not, please call for Kankuro. He will not be as lenient as I am.” She faces Tenten and Hikaru. “The two of you, please come this way.” 

Once out of the building, Temari walks them to the home that she shares with Kankuro and Gaara, the Kazekage, and offers them to stay the night there. Tenten is slightly concerned about whether or not it is fitting for them to do so, but Temari brushes it off easily. 

“It’s your second time in Suna, and you’re actually staying for the night this time. The least I can do is offer a place for an old friend to stay,” Temari says. Plus, I wanted to talk to the two of you about some suspicious activity that’s been happening in the last two weeks, since the war ended. It’s a bit… concerning. But that can wait.” Temari grins at Tenten as the weapons mistress puts down her backpack and gently lays the two ninjato swords on the bed, along with her Anbu mask. “Right now, you and I are going to the hot springs for some quality girl time.” 

Tenten’s eyebrows skyrocket. “Suna has hot springs? How? And what about Hikaru?” She turns to find the spot where Hikaru had been standing to be empty. “Where did he even go?”

“I saw him toward our miniature library, so he’ll probably be occupied for some time,” Temari says, nudging Tenten along to the exit. “As for the hot springs, well, Gaara did whatever he did and then we got hot springs. They opened about a week ago, so I haven’t had an opportunity to try it yet. So we’re going now.” 

Tenten suddenly finds herself being pushed toward the door, but she stops Temari for a moment. “Alright, jeez, but let me grab some clothes and stuff first.” Temari goes to gather her belongings and leaves the room. Tenten grabs a spare change of clothes, along with her second, clean Anbu vest. Deciding that she will wash the other one later, she tosses it to the corner of the bed in the guest room. Then, she fastens the two ninjato to her back and attaches one of her scrolls to her hip.  _ All safe now _ , her mind says at last. 

When they get to the hot springs, it’s surprisingly similar to Konoha’s but different with more rocky terrain and such. There are a few women there, most a little older than Tenten’s age, but many leave in the presence of Temari. After a couple of minutes, it’s practically just the two of them left. 

Slipping into the hot water, Tenten sighs heavily, enjoying the warmth surrounding her. “I have to say, whatever Gaara did to get these springs, he did a good job.” 

Temari’s chuckle rings from a few feet away. “I know right? And he’s never even been to a hot spring either!” 

“So how have you been?” Temari asks Tenten, as the weapons mistress leans back and closes her eyes to relax. “I haven’t seen you since the war ended. How’s Konoha doing?” 

“It’s alright, I guess. The village is recovering. Lots of rebuilding and Kakashi-san’s is probably facing another pile of paperwork in his office right now. Naruto finally has started talking to Hinata like a normal person, Ino is attached to Sai like glue, Sakura’s not letting Sasuke out of her sight, Kiba’s met some girl called Tamaki. Chouji’s found some new chip flavor, Shino’s still quiet as usual. Shikamaru’s probably complaining about something to his mom right now and probably going to be very excited to see you as well.” 

“Mhm…” Temari nods in agreement. “Wait what?!” 

The water splashes around Tenten. Sure, enough, she opens her eyes to see Temari’s face completely red, and the blonde waving her arms in denial. 

“You can’t just say things like that, Tenten!” After a moment, Temari calms and their conversation picks up again as they chat about what’s been happening in their villages. Tenten mentions that she's joined Anbu, and even though Temari is unsure of whether or not it's a good thing, she congratulates Tenten anyways, because getting into Anbu is also a measure of how strong a shinobi is. Somehow, it shifts to the war and casualties and the flood of funerals that have been taking place in the past week.

“There’s rubble everywhere,” Tenten says, as the image of Konoha springs into her mind. “So many are dead, and we’ve been trying to keep count of the ninjas, but there’s too many missing and there’s so many that are so disfigured that you can’t even identify them.” She closes her eyes again, tilting her chin up as she rests the back of her head against the side of the spring. 

The image of Neji springs into her mind again, and she’s grateful that at least Neji wasn’t one of those missing-in-action ninjas that were listed in Kakashi’s papers. But her gratitude is short-lived as she realizes that it’s even worse, because if Neji were missing, at least he could have had a chance of being alive. But he was dead, and she saw it with her own eyes. She went to his funeral, wore her black dress, but she didn’t cry over his grave. The war was over, but then again, it wasn’t. The wounds it left on Konoha had still yet to be cleaned and stitched up; the scars that had been left on her heart were still fresh. The poem she once read from Neji’s poetry book jumps into her mind. 

_ Bite your tongue and tell a lie.  _

_ Hold your words and mask your sighs. _

_ Don’t ask how and don’t ask why.  _

_ Don’t look down, kunoichi don’t cry.  _

“Hey, you alright?” Temari’s voice floated beside her. Tenten opens her eyes and realizes that her face is wet, and she can’t tell if it’s from the steam of the hot springs or her tears. She dips her face beneath the water before murmuring an answer. 

“I’m fine.” 

“Tenten.” Temari’s voice is suddenly somber, and she says Tenten’s name tentatively, as if not knowing whether or not she should talk. 

“Yes?” 

“With all that’s happened, just… know that it’s alright to not be fine,” Temari says, voice soft. 

Tenten’s eyes snap open. “What do you mean? The war’s over, everything's back to normal, so I’m perfectly fine.” 

There is a brief moment of silence. “I heard about Neji.” 

“I’m sure you did. He was a hero.” 

“No, I’m not talking about that. I meant you two… before the war.” 

“Oh,” Tenten doesn’t know what else to say. “I— it’s in the past, so I’m not dwelling on that.” Her eyes are welling with tears, but she refuses to let them fall as she repeats her words. “It’s all in the past.” 

Suddenly, Temari’s arms are wrapping around her and her walls are falling. She doesn’t even care that the two of them are naked, or that there’s another lady twenty-some feet away glancing at them curiously, and the tears come, salty and heavy with all of her pent up frustrations and anger and sadness. 

Temari’s voice is softer than ever, and she murmurs gentle words of comfort to Tenten’s ears. 

Temari suddenly thinks back to when she was very young, when a village elder of Suna once told her to stand in someone else’s shoes before speaking or doing anything. The memory sparks something in her, and she takes herself and plants herself into Tenten’s shoes, and wonders,  _ if Shikamaru died that day… how would I feel?  _

She searches for an answer as her friend mourns, but she is unable to find a proper answer. She doesn’t know how she would have reacted, had she been the one who was engaged and who watched her lover die in front of her eyes. 

Her own eyes are getting wet as well, and she doesn’t feel for Neji, but the heartbroken friend in front of her. Within moments, she is crying openly as well, even though Sabaku no Temari  _ doesn’t _ cry, as she tightens her grip on her friend. 

“‘I’m sorry, Tenten,” she tells her friend. Tenten doesn’t react but she continues anyway. “You deserved better. No one deserves to have to go through what you did.” After Temari’s last sentence, no more words are exchanged between the two for the rest of their time at the hot springs.

The two of them do not get home until late that night. It is only after many alcoholic drinks and a phone call to the Kazekage’s office that Gaara and Kankuro arrive at the tavern, sandals wet and sandy from an unexpected early November rainstorm, and the two of them carry a drunk Suna ambassador and a drunk Konoha weapons mistress to the Kazekage’s home. Gaara gets the easier job of carrying Temari, who is practically unconscious, but Kankuro is stuck with Tenten, who refuses to be carried, and is still conscious enough to form grammatically incorrect sentences. 

“Let me alone!!” she demands, smacking at Kankuro’s hands when he reaches for her arm. “I’m kunoichi, an’ I can—I handle me!”

The puppet user shakes his head, sighing. How did he get into this situation? “I’m sure you can handle yourself fine, but I’m taking you home.” 

“You takin’ me home? But, you’re mot my boyfren’!” Tenten’s eyebrows arch in confusion. “Where’s Neji? Neji ‘ways takes me ‘ome.  _ Neeeeeeji _ ?! Where're youuuu?” She spins around wildly, looking for the said Hyuga. Her gaze lands on Kankuro, unfocused. “Tha’s some nice makeup you got. You remind me o’ one’na my fren’s… Ah! You look like ‘Kuro! ‘aven’t seen ‘Kuro in a while, I wonder how he’s is!”

Kankuro sighs. “Tenten, I  _ am _ Kankuro, and you’ve had way too much to drink. We need to get going. How did Temari even convince you to…?” Kankuro looks to his younger brother for help, but Gaara simply shrugs and begins to walk away, carrying their older sister bridal-style. Meanwhile, Kankuro has managed to get Tenten to stand from her stool and lean against his right side to stay upright. 

“How did ‘Mari get me ‘ere? I think were at ‘ot springs, an’... were cryin’ and suff… somethin’ ‘bout the war…” Kankuro notices that her unfocused eyes suddenly regain a sense of direction as she stares off into a distance. Her voice becomes melancholic as well, all while still carrying the slight slur. “Talked about Neji. Neji-kun.” Her voice breaks as she repeats her dead lover’s name. “ _ My Neji _ . He’s  _ gone. _ ”

Kankuro’s frowns, not knowing how to handle the situation. Indeed, he had heard about the casualties that Konoha had suffered during the war, and near the top of the list was Hyuga Neji’s name. Neji’s death had come as a shock to his siblings and him. To think that Neji would sacrifice his life, even though he was engaged and had a future with Tenten laid out in front of him— Kankuro knows that what Neji did was the honorable thing, but seeing Tenten so heartbroken and sad makes him wish that the Hyuga prodigy were still alive, mainly so Kankuro could beat him into pulp. 

But still, Kankuro had paid his respects. Busy with reorganizing Suna and unable to attend all of the funerals that had taken place during the weeks after the war, he and his siblings had been burning incense nonstop and wearing their black traditional wear almost every day. 

“I’m sorry,” Tenten’s voice cut through his thoughts. She’s leaning heavily against him, and she doesn’t resist when Kankuro swoops her up into his arms. There are no tears on her cheeks, but their eyes meet, and Kankuro can tell how upset the weapon's mistress is. 

“Don’t be,” Kankuro says, as gently as possible. He doesn’t know how to be kind, but Tenten is one of Temari’s closest friends, so the least he can do is try. “Right now, we just need to get home and you need to get some sleep. You’ll have one hell of a hangover tomorrow morning, though.” 

“I’m sorry,” Tenten repeats, burying her face into the side of the puppet user’s shoulder as they start the journey to the Kazekage’s home. The rainstorm has become a very light drizzle, and when a droplet of rain falls on her face, she is hiscupping, but no tears are shedding. Her throat is dry and her hands are shaking. “I’m sorry, I’m a mess, everythin’ ‘urts and I’m sorry for bein’ a burden.” She can slowly feel the strength leaving her body, and her vision is becoming hazy. 

“You’re not a burden, Tenten,” Kankuro’s voice washes over her. “You’re not being yourself right now.” 

Tenten ignores his last sentence. “If I weren’t sucha burden, if I ‘ad more pow’r, Neji wud’in ‘ave died. Then, maybe everythin’ wud’ve been ‘kay.” Her right hand clutches at the fabric of the Anbu vest, where her chest is. “Maybe it wud’in hurt so much ‘ere.”

Kankuro doesn’t know what else to say. There’s a long stretch of silence before he says, “It’s going to hurt there for some time, but trust me, you are not a burden, no matter what you think.” Pause. “One day, it’ll all be alright.” He doesn’t know if Tenten is still with him, or if she’s listening, but all he can do is hope that she understands. “One day, you’ll be alright.”

Tenten can slowly feel the strength leaving her body, and her vision becomes hazy. She’s so, so,  _ so _ tired. She fights the darkness creeping over her vision, she resists with all of her remaining strength and pushes back with all her might, keeping it at bay. She pulls her head away from Kankuro’s shoulder and lets it tilt back until she’s looking at the sky. 

Another poem she once read from Neji’s poetry book jumps into her mind. 

_ My dear, look at the stars— _

_ Look, how they shine for you! _

_ But, my, look at the skies— _

_ Oh, how they mourn for us two. _

When the darkness pushes to take over her vision once again, she closes her eyes and doesn’t resist the unusual tranquillity that washes over her. 

She’s tired of feeling. 


End file.
